As an avid fan of DC Comics, I was thrilled to hear that the franchise was bringing “Suicide Squad” to the big screen. My parents took me to the theater to see it on opening day, and any hopes I had for correlation to the comics were promptly dashed. Regardless, I decided to watch the film as if it were any other generic action movie. With that mindset, I felt that the movie was fairly good. I especially loved the dynamics between the characters Deadshot and Harley Quinn, as well as Harley and the Joker.
Many people apparently echoed my sentiments about the latter pair, as seen by the subsequent explosion of Joker/Harley couple costumes, and the number of girlfriends I saw wearing shirts proclaiming to be “Daddy’s Little Monster.” Honestly, I thought very little of it at the time. It was nothing more than a resultant pop cultural influx from the film, right?
Recently, however, I have had the opportunity to watch the movie again. While several things that I’d managed to somehow gloss over on my first viewing (including any bad acting and awkward dialogue), I was especially struck by the nature of the relationship between the Clown Prince and his girl. While the portrayal of the two was a lot more mild than it is in the reality of the comics, there were still some things fundamentally wrong with their interactions in the film, specifically toward Harley. Overall, I was bemused at how the relationship was romanticized by many people who had seen the movie.
However, the unsavory dynamics of the relation may have been overlooked by people, so I have noted some of the things that I found particularly disturbing about the affair.
1. The abuse.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I’d run if someone said they were going to “hurt [me] really, really, bad.” I guess that wasn’t Harleen Quinzel’s style, because she certainly stuck around. Being “hurt really, really, bad” became a constant motif throughout the relationship, as the Joker abused her physically and through mental manipulation. While the movie did not show many instances of physical abuse on-screen, it is certainly implied. The most notable example would be seen clearly in Harley’s narrated descent into madness after being electrocuted by the Joker for attempting to do her job as a psychiatrist. That instance was horrifying enough, but similar instances were implied to follow in order for her psyche to fragment so thoroughly. The mental-emotional abuse was visible as well, especially in how the Jester managed to manipulate Harley to throw herself into a vat of chemicals in order to prove her devotion to him. A relationship of this nature is nothing to idealize.
2. The utter lack of equality.
These two villains are among some of the greatest partnerships in the comic book realm, right along with the Dynamic Duo of Batman and Robin, and Wonder Woman and Superman. However, the movie’s representation of the relationship was one of female subservience. The dynamic was one of complete dominance on the part of the Joker, and complete submission from Harley. A relationship between two people is meant to be one of equality, where the opinions of both members matter for the sake of mutual respect. So the feminist in me shuddered to see the Joker commanding his “partner” around. It seemed to me that Harley was more of a revered pet to him, where he was the only one who was allowed to touch. Nothing about that seemed ideal.
3. The codependency.
Sure, he may have left her to die at the bottom of the bay after the car wreck, but the Joker certainly couldn’t function without Harley. Neither of them were truly benefiting from being together, but they kept almost dying in their attempts to get back together. Joker expended large amounts of time, energy, and resources to spring Harley from the rest of the Squad (twice!), even though she was little more than a fun accessory to accentuate his suits. And while Harley was getting abused and ignored, she believed that their love was worth enduring it for.
Again, I understand that this was pretty lightweight compared to what the comics showed. However, even this relatively placid instance proved to be nothing to emulate. Please stop romanticizing this highly unhealthy relationship. It’s not a joke, and certainly nothing to aspire to have.
